


death is music to my ears

by arstronomy



Category: GOT7, SEVENTEEN (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: 2youngjae poly circle, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - High School, Fluff, M/M, No One Is Human, Polyamory, also an all boys boarding school, bts + seventeen are all minor characters, but mostly jjp crushing on each other + youngjae, jackson & jb: werewolves, jinyoung: the grim reaper lol, mark: “rare” type of elf, the school is meant for non-human kiddies, the school is racist against jinyoung, you will see, youngjae: nymph, yugbam: pixies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2019-02-16 08:54:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13050687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arstronomy/pseuds/arstronomy
Summary: Even at a school where creatures that only exist in fairy tales attend, the grim reaper Jinyoung finds it difficult to fit in.





	death is music to my ears

“Mr. Park Jinyoung. Would you, ah, mind elaborating on this?”

Sitting across from each other with one large, rich-brown desk placed in between them, they stare into one another’s gaze as the only sound that echoes in the room comes from a massive grandfather clock. The room is decorated completely in all sorts of antique furniture, vases, figurines, and the like. It’s more or less the first time for the younger of the two to be in such a room that reeks of old men and tea poured in even older teeacups. His nose twitches slightly because it’s itchy, but he doesn’t want to scratch it in front of the authoritative man who’s pointing a long finger at a sheet of paper on the desk. Specifically, the man is pointing at a certain section of the paper and raising an eyebrow at the teen seated in front of him, anticipating an answer. 

The paper is an entrance form of sorts, one that Jinyoung filled and turned in a week ago to the man he’s currently facing: the principal that everyone respects and fears.

Jinyoung tilts his eyes down to where the principal’s finger is pointed at, though he already knows what he’s being questioned for. He expected that the principal wouldn’t let it slip away unnoticed when he filled out the paper, anyways. He inhales slowly and heavily, adjusting his posture. The chair is basically a single person-sized sofa and his body probably subconsciously relaxed too much in its cushions.

“Death,” Jinyoung says, breaking the silence. He doesn’t look particularly nervous or anxious, despite that fact that he’s saying a rather bold word to the most powerful man on campus — the campus of his new school, not to mention.

“Is there a different… name for this? I’m afraid simply putting ‘death’ is not enough,” the principal replies while clearing his throat, pushing up his glasses that are at least half the size they should be. Although his face is well-ripened and wrinkled with old age, his eyes still shimmer in curiosity at this Jinyoung boy. _It’s certainly a first, _he thinks while glancing at Jinyoung’s emotionless expression and leaning back in his throne-like sofa chair. He rests his elbows on the armrests of his chair, folding his hands together and resting them underneath his chin.__

__Jinyoung fidgets a bit in his seat, his perfectly straight back gradually losing its poise. He’s not the most comfortable he’s ever felt, especially because of the topic of their conversation. “You’ve heard of the Grim Reaper, I assume?” He pauses, fighting the urge to lick his lower lip. He’d forgotten to put on some chapstick in the morning. “Something like that. It’s… It’s difficult to explain.”_ _

__“I see,” murmurs the old man, seeming to nod his chin as a way of showing that he’s contemplating. Indeed, he’s never had a student like Jinyoung show up to his school so he has no clue what to do with him. But, of course, he’s also intrigued by the presence of his new student — he thinks he’s one of a kind, quite literally — and he smiles. It’s meant to be a friendly smile, one to unofficially welcome Jinyoung yet he can’t help but find it unsettling. Then again, maybe Jinyoung’s the one who should stop doubting everyone who smiles more than he does._ _

__The principal stands to his feet, using the armrests to assist his elderly body so he can approach a dark, wooden table found across the room. The thick and rather sturdy rug that stretches over the entire floor makes shuffling noises under Jinyoung’s — who had just gotten up after realizing the principal is moving around the room — hesitant steps. There’s a large box on the table and the man takes out a folded pile of clothing from it and hands it to Jinyoung, grinning. It’s his uniform. He accepts the uniform with a ninety degree bow, eyeing what will be his daily outfit for the following year. Majority of the jacket and trousers are a dark navy blue, but the necktie and linings of the collar and edges of the sleeves are a deep purple hue. Jinyoung’s never seen purple on a school uniform before._ _

__“Ah!” the principal exclaims as though he suddenly remembered something important, pointing an index finger to the ceiling. He travels to the massive shelves of the room and, after searching through a couple of medium-sized boxes placed there, picks up what seems to be a badge with a bronze glow to it. It’s attached to a tied ribbon, which Jinyoung notices is a similar shade of purple to what is dyed on his new uniform._ _

__The old man’s hand waves around the badge that’s being held in his other, his palm open. It looks like he’s murmuring something but Jinyoung can’t see what he’s doing that well, considering the distance between the two. He then turns around, steps up to Jinyoung and hands the badge to him with a smile._ _

__“Oh.” Jinyoung flips it around a couple of times, his thumb brushing over the center part of the badge. His full name and a series of ten digits are etched into the metal, though he swears those weren’t there before. “This is my ID?”_ _

__“Something like that, yes. The color of those ribbons are important, might I add.” Someone knocks gently on the door, which the principal opens not long after. “You’re just in time!” Jinyoung turns his head around, seeing a tall student wearing a uniform of purple, just like his, staring back with a laidback smile on his handsome face. His hair is a light brown hue and parted three-fourths of the way of his head, his bangs completely out of the way of his forehead. He’s very attractive indeed, but Jinyoung finds that his looks make him hard to trust._ _

__The principal, clearing his throat loudly and placing his hand against his new guest’s back, explains to Jinyoung, “This is Joshua Hong, president of the demon group’s student council.”_ _

__Jinyoung’s mouth hangs open for a couple of second before actually saying anything while he tilts his head at the old man. “I’m sorry, the what group?”_ _

__“Everyone gets a little surprised at first,” Joshua replies with a soft chuckle, lifting up a large bag — wider than he is — and gesturing towards the hallway that’s beyond the open door behind him. “Come on, I’ll help you get a room.” He first bows to the principal, which he does with the same bright smile, and steps out of the room while expecting that Jinyoung will follow — and indeed he does, despite the increasing number of questions he has for both Joshua and the principal._ _

__Inhaling sharply through his nose, Jinyoung walks besides Joshua and stares at the marble-white floor. It makes Joshua’s footsteps sound five times as louder than they should be. “Thank you for, um, carrying my heavy stuff,” he says a bit hesitantly, eyeing the bag that Joshua’s still holding in one hand. The other shakes his head with a smile, implying that it’s no trouble. They travel down the hallway, up what seems to be the main staircase and down more halls, passing by plenty of doors and silence. The windows are very tall, perhaps enough for a giraffe to walk through comfortably, and decorate the side opposite to the rooms. All the walls, ceilings and doors are painted in a gentle beige color. Something seems off at the moment, though. “Why isn’t there anyone in these halls?”_ _

__“Well, the mess hall isn’t open yet, so I suppose everyone’s still in their dorms.” Joshua hums a tune, facing straight ahead as he speaks — he doesn’t need to glance at Jinyoung to know that he’s paying attention. Jinyoung is currently gawking at the male walking besides him and counts three piercings on one of his ears. He imagined that a school as prestigious as this would be strict about the dress code but, then again, this is the same school that invited _him, Park Jinyoung, _to come. The people running the school _know _what he is and for some reason, they want him here._____ _

______“But you’re up and about.” Jinyoung’s legs are a bit tired from all the stairs-climbing they’ve been doing, but he then remembers that Joshua is the one carrying a bag._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I kind of have to. I’m a president, after all,” responds Joshua with a rather sheepish chuckle. He wants to stay in bed longer, too, but his responsibilities as the head of the student council prevent him from doing so. He shrugs, finding it to be not much of a hassle. Being in the position he is, he’s salvaged from all sorts of less than pleasant treatment from the other students. Ah, yes, that’s a big thing he needs to inform — no, _warn _— Jinyoung about.___ _ _ _ _ _

________Joshua’ll have to do that later, however, because they’ve reached a certain small room located at the end of the hallway. Next to the plain, white door with the golden doorknob is a glass nameplate that has the name ‘Park Jinyoung’ written in bold on it. Underneath the name, a thin line colored in red runs across the nameplate. Jinyoung is, of course, confused, but that confusion (mostly) disappears when Joshua opens the door to reveal a middle-aged man wearing long robes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He’s sitting at his desk and has a pen in hand, presumably busy working on some paperwork. He glances up from whatever he’s jotting down. “Good morning!” he greets with a wide smile, letting Jinyoung see the two abnormally sharp canine teeth. Naturally, his gaze is fixed on the new student — he’s already seen Joshua plenty of times before — and he’s trying to figure out exactly what he is. “Is he a new student in need of a dorm room?” the man inquires, widening his eyes expectantly._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Yes, he is. He’s Park Jinyoung of the demon group,” Joshua answers, glancing towards the quiet Jinyoung._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“We’re like brothers, aren’t we?” the man jokes, laughing wholeheartedly as Joshua joins in with some chuckles. Meanwhile, Jinyoung stands still in absolute silence and with a straight yet slightly worried face. “Sorry, I must’ve made you uncomfortable, haven’t I?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Ah— No, not at all. I’m just a bit… taken aback.” The new student shakes his head and waves his hand around dismissively, squinting his eyes at the man in front of him who apparently shares the exact same name as him. He hopes his future classmates won’t tease him about it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The man — commonly referred to as JYP by students and fellow staff members — is in charge of… many things, but the most important thing he takes care of is the determination of where students will be placed in terms of dorm rooms. Not only that, he is also in charge of the school’s theatrical and musical business, planning performances or shows and managing the budget for certain equipment. He’s usually the first teacher students who come late — in other words, those who weren’t there the first day when everyone’s dorm rooms were assigned all at once — see. Typically, they don’t have a one-on-one conversation with the principal; Jinyoung is simply a special case._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He licks the tip of his thumb (which is a habit that Jinyoung finds difficult to watch others having) before pulling out a drawer and searching through a series of paper folders, eventually picking out a particular folder that he’s been looking for. He places it on his desk and chooses a sheet of paper from the now opened folder, glancing at the messy handwriting that’s scribbled all over it while humming a tune unfamiliar to Jinyoung. It doesn’t take long for JYP to notice something, though, and his lips purse in displeasure as a result. “It looks like all the purple dorms are full. There isn’t any space for Jinyoung.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Jinyoung blinks twice in a row, not sure whether he should be disappointed or glad._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Then he’ll have no choice but to join a room of a different group,” Joshua pipes up, the man nodding his head in agreement. “Which group, though?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Hm… The werewolves are pretty aggressive, so that isn’t an option…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________Aggressive? _Jinyoung blinks again, not quite following the conversation. He didn’t even know that the school has werewolves as an entire group of their own.__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“What about the sprites?” suggests Joshua, who only receives another disapproving head-shake from the one sitting at the desk._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“No, they mess around with other kids too often. Jinyoung wouldn’t last an hour before wanting to pull his hair out.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________What are sprites? _asks the increasingly confused Jinyoung to himself, fighting the urge to clear his throat and request that the two others slow down so that he can understand. Maybe it’s his fault for not reading the guide to the school and its rules (which he found at the front lobby on shelves). Then again, from the looks of it, the guidebook is probably something-hundred pages long and Jinyoung didn’t want to waste his time reading a whole novel that the principal himself most likely wrote. No offense to the principal, of course.__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Then the woodlands should be suitable. They’re benevolent people.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“But they are also unusually sensitive. Throwing Jinyoung in their group without warning will cause me to receive endless requests for him to move elsewhere,” he answers in a voice that’s alarmingly more hushed than earlier. His face looks serious now which surprise Jinyoung and even Joshua, considering how this man is wearing bathrobes to work. “The vampires… I think they’re the best option. They’re somewhat similar to Jinyoung and I believe he can fit in just fine.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Joshua shrugs, though he has to hear what Jinyoung has to say about all this. Turning his head to the side in order to face him, he asks, “What do you think? Do vampires sound okay? I promise they won’t bite you. It’s been made very clear to them that doing so isn’t the, er, best idea.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Jinyoung was just about to blank out until he realizes that someone is talking directly to him. His mouth opens, even though nothing comes out, and he shrugs his shoulders, not having much care about who he shares a room with (of course, having a room to himself would be ideal, but that isn’t going to happen). Besides, he’s never interacted with vampires before. Sharing a dorm room with a couple of them for the next year surely would be an interesting experience to have. “I don’t mind.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Smiling in agreement, JYP pulls out the same drawer and scavenges for a different folder, which he is able to find in no time because of how many sheets of paper are shoved into it. It’s nearly overflowing with papers, and Jinyoung has an idea of why it’s like that. The man sighs as he prepares himself for a while of flipping through old papers, which he spends the next couple of minutes doing. Whilst they’re waiting, Jinyoung glances towards Joshua a couple of times to see what he’s doing. He seems to be staring at the tiger stripes-patterned slippers that the elder is wearing._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Here we go! Room 6-17E, currently occupied by two third years and one second year. All of them seem to be…” he trails off as his eyes are glued on the paper, squinting at the tiny notes underneath each student’s name. “They’re not troublemakers, at the very least. I’ll have Jinyoung’s name fill in the fourth empty spot and inform the principal later.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Joshua nods. Something seems to bother him, judging from his expression that suddenly grows cold. “Do you want me to escort him there?” he inquires in a low voice, one that’s suspiciously dark-sounding, though Jinyoung doesn’t think much about it. He sighs after watching JYP nod his head in silence, bowing for him before stepping out of the room. Making sure that Jinyoung has left the room and closed the door, Joshua heads towards the staircase that appears to split the halls into two perfect halves. “To be honest, I don’t really want to do this.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Sorry?” Jinyoung asks with a tilt of his head (even though the other can’t see it since he’s a couple of stairs ahead of him). “Do what?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Another sigh escapes the president’s lips. “Go to the vampires’ floors. It’s like… their territory and they get iffy when others wander into it.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Jinyoung has nothing to say to him, so his mouth stays shut for the rest of the trip. When they (finally) stop climbing the stairs and walk towards the open lobby-like space that leads to, again, more halls, the first thing Jinyoung notices is that the area is unusually cold. It’s enough to send a shiver up his spine, and he comes to understand what Joshua’s label for the place — their ‘territory’ — means._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Although it’s early in the morning and there should be no good reason to be out in the halls, the two walk past plenty of pale-skinned, dark-eyed students who stare at them carefully, none of them showing a single smile or even a move of their facial muscles. They’re all wearing their uniforms and the red ties, lining and badges stand out to the newcomer. Seeing the overwhelming amount of red on their clothing causes his fingers to subconsciously clench around his own uniform — his purple uniform — that he’s been holding for a while now. Jinyoung shivers again; the hallway is significantly colder than the rest of the building and none of the lights are on. He can see that Joshua is facing forward, not daring to spare a glance to the students loitering around the halls, though he also witnesses him gulping. He must be anxious or nervous about something._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Demon boy doesn’t belong here,” says an intimidatingly tall student standing against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. Joshua completely ignores him and his remark, while Jinyoung can’t help but see who had just spoken. In return, he only receives a cold, emotionless expression from that tall male. He quickly turns away and focuses his eyes on Joshua’s back instead. He agrees with Joshua — if this is what he experienced every time he visited this ‘territory,’ he wouldn’t want to step foot onto this floor anymore. Unfortunately for him, his new dorm room is somewhere deep in these cold halls._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Another voice coming from behind cackles loudly. “Here to seduce someone again?” he taunts, obviously not expecting an answer. “I wonder if slut blood tastes good… Oh, I’m sorry — that’s the wrong name. I meant slut-demon.” The hand that’s holding the strap of Jinyoung’s bag tightens its grip but, of course, patience is important to Joshua, so he clenches his teeth and ignores it. A few more from both sides of the halls — some standing, some sitting — giggle in amusement, which is a chilling sound that Jinyoung won’t forget in the long run. The pace of Joshua’s walking quickens, perhaps an attempt to get this unpleasant visit over with already._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________The president stops and knocks at a certain door with the number 17 labeled on it, tapping his foot as he waits for the answer. Jinyoung stands a good distance away from the door, but still close enough for him to whisper to Joshua. “What’s the deal with them?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“They don’t like us. No one does,” quickly answers Joshua in a low voice lined with a subtle hint of pain. Jinyoung doesn’t have the chance to wonder what the other implies by that, because that’s when the door swings open and a tall, sleepy-looking student with dark circles under his eyes emerges._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“God… Are we in trouble?” he asks, yawning in the process. His round eyes blink a couple of times — once at Joshua, twice at Jinyoung — and he sniffs his nose. He doesn’t look impressed nor disappointed, but that’s as much as one can expect from a drowsy vampire._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Joshua shakes his head and gulps again before shoving his hand holding Jinyoung’s belongings towards him. “No. You have a new dorm mate. Put this on the empty bed, will you?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Shrugging, he grabs Jinyoung’s bag and scratches the back of his auburn hair while trudging his way back into the room. Before Jinyoung can take any step further, he’s stopped by Joshua’s pale hand and his genuinely concerned look._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Listen, Jinyoung. I just want to warn you that… that people will call you names. They will scowl and sneer at you, all because of your uniform and that badge.” Joshua places his hand on the other’s shoulder; since they’re basically at the same height, they’re staring into each other eyes, Jinyoung looking mildly worried and Joshua looking as though it’s difficult to explain whatever he’s trying to convey. “And if they do, no matter how ridiculous their claims are about you, _ignore them. _Okay?”___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Jinyoung nods his head, hushed. At this point, he doesn’t fully understand the extent of the school’s discriminatory behavior particularly against those labeled as demons, which is what Joshua attempted to caution him about. But, sooner or later, Jinyoung will understand what he means — and that he should take the warning _very _seriously.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________“Good luck.” With a soft sigh, Joshua rubs the other’s back comfortingly and lets him make his way into his new dorm room. Out of respect, he bows with a tiny smile of gratitude, turning around on his heel afterwards. He shuts the door behind him, staring at the door knob. A student seated nearby, back flat against the wall and both legs stretched out, sticks his bright red tongue at Joshua._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________“You’ll need it,” he whispers at the door._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________—_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________Over three thousand students attend the same school that Jinyoung has just transferred into, and none of them are humans._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________The school itself is a huge secret to anyone who _is _a human — the papers students (and their guardians) are required to fill out have strict policies about exposing what lies on the campus. Going against those policies will have dire consequences and it honestly isn’t worth it, since more than likely no one will believe a person if they claim a giant school for vampires, werewolves and others exists on a small island. Evidence of this school being real is essentially impossible to get. The building is one a tiny piece of land floating in the middle of the ocean, so the only reliable option of reaching the school is by boat from a certain port that one must have a special ticket to access (which is mailed to the students after their enrollment has been approved and officialized). To ensure that other wandering boats don’t come across the school by accident, the powerful and mysterious principal constantly has a barrier around the island. To those boats and its sailors, the land and the campus is invisible.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________A school so secretive doesn’t go around town putting up posters, inviting anyone who wishes to enroll to contact them, obviously. Half of the staff work at the actual campus, while the other half work undercover, blended into crowds on streets of busy cities. Each of them can ‘tell’ if a person is a human or something more — the ways they can ‘tell’ varies between each individual — and usually approach whoever has caught their attention. They’re disguised as normal people with normal jobs, of course, for the sake of hiding their true identities. Jinyoung had an _interesting _experience with one of these people coming up to him and offering him a spot at the academy.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________He was actually in the middle of ‘reaping’ a homeless man in an empty park at midnight when one of these people working for the school — a teacher and also a nymph, off-duty at the time — approached him. Jinyoung didn’t bother hiding what he was doing, nor the large scythe that appeared to be made out of black fog in his hand._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________It was cancer, he’d explained calmly to the teacher, sensing that they weren’t exactly human and that it was safe to reveal his intentions. According to a tiny hourglass that had been in his possession since his powers as ‘Death’ had awakened, it was the man’s fate for his soul to leave his physical body that night. He had been suffering from terminal illness for a while and, without the money able to pay for medical care, was left with his only option: to wait for his inevitable and painful death to come. However, that’s when Jinyoung comes in — he separates the soul from the body and guides it to the afterlife, a painless and almost peaceful process. Some get the wrong idea about Death, though. Jinyoung doesn’t have any control over when or where a person dies; fate is fate and he doesn’t have the power to manipulate what will naturally happen. He can, however, assist one’s departure from the living world to the next, and that’s what he’s been trying his best to do ever since he discovered he had the ability to do so._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________The teacher saw that Jinyoung would be a suitable student for the school and perhaps even have a better experience surrounded by others who don’t belong in the human crowd. The high-schooler (he was on summer vacation during his third year of high school, hence the reason why he was wandering around a park at midnight) was handed a formal paper with the teacher and school’s contacts and administration form attached before they disappeared. He had questions, of course, but he figured he could call the teacher or something later._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________When Jinyoung returned home, he promptly told both his parents about his encounter with the less-than-human teacher and the invitation he had received to attend the school. They were a bit doubtful about whether this school would be better than the one Jinyoung is already attending — which is one of the best in the city — until they saw pictures of the campus and lists of classes offered that were provided on the papers. His parents are indeed aware of the fact that their son isn’t quite like the rest of his classmates, and so are his three older sisters. Those girls tend to tease and make fun of him about it, while his parents tell them to zip their mouths whenever they do._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________It really is a mystery as to how and why Jinyoung is the way he is. His sisters, his parents, their parents, so on and so forth — all of them are average human beings. For some reason, Death decided to knock on their door and manifest itself in Jinyoung’s newborn body. So now, Jinyoung is stuck with having to deal — using his own two hands — with the death of hundreds, thousands of people as long as he lives and is expected to pretend as though he’s leading a ‘normal’ life._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Maybe this school of fantastic creatures, all abnormal high school students just like Jinyoung, is the place where he’ll thrive and finally feel as though he belongs to the crowd._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________—_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“What’s your name?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Park Jinyoung,” he answers breathily, instinctively backing away from a tall boy with slim, sharp eyes and dark bangs that cover his eyebrows completely. He seems to be… sniffing the air around him, which doesn’t make Jinyoung feel quite as welcome as he hoped to be._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Another person rushes behind the one in the midst of smelling Jinyoung and pulls him away with a cross look. He has a distinctly long nose and face that makes him appear older than he probably is, though he looks much friendlier than his roommate. He smiles apologetically at Jinyoung, further emphasizing his rather pointy nose. “I’m sorry about him. He’s weird.” With his hand, he gestures towards the main area of the dorm room and beckons for Jinyoung to follow him, intending to show him around. “I’m Seokmin and he’s Wonwoo.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Jinyoung glances at the taller one out of the two — Wonwoo — when he’s introduced, intending to give him a handshake or even a smile for their first meeting. He finds it difficult to do so, though, because Wonwoo’s expression is absolutely emotionless. He ends up staring at him, speechless before following Seokmin further into the room._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________The place is pretty nice for a room meant for high school students, Jinyoung would say. It’s organized and decorated similarly to a hotel room, but the messy piles of books and clothes scattered all over mark the presence of teenage boys. There’s a table large enough to fit four people that has pencils and textbooks on it, presumably being the place where they do their schoolwork. The table is found in the living room-like space, which is also the widest part of the dormitory. A family of six could comfortably spread around that certain part. Only one small window is at the very back of the room and it’s covered by thick curtains. Well, Jinyoung couldn’t have expected open windows in  
a living space belonging to vampires, could he?_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________From the largest area splits two rooms, each found on opposite sides when one first walks into the dorm. One of them, Seokmin points out, is the bathroom. There’s only one in each dormitory, he explains, so they have a rule about not using the bathroom for more than fifteen minutes at a time. The other door leads to where the beds are located, which are two bunkbeds placed next to the opposing wall from each other. Jinyoung’s new bed is found on the bunkbeds that are placed on the right-hand side of the small room and is the bottom one. His bag lies on its mattress, but the guy who put it there is nowhere to be seen. When no one is seemingly paying attention, he places his folded uniform and badge on the bed, close to the wall so it’s hard to see._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Where’s Jun?” Seokmin asks the silent Wonwoo, who has already plopped back onto his bed — which is also the bottom bed, parallel to Jinyoung’s. As a response, he shrugs and plugs a pair of earbuds in._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Just then, the one who first greeted Jinyoung and Joshua enters the bedroom holding four plastic cups filled with a bright red drink. He hands one to each person in the room, including Jinyoung, and clears his throat. He’s the one referred to as Jun, which is the shortened version of his full first name, Junhui._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Junhui holds up his own cup and with a loud voice, he announces, “To welcome our new roommate, uh…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Jinyoung,” Seokmin whispers._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Right. Welcome, Jinyoung,” he continues, pretending as though he definitely knew what Jinyoung’s name is, staring at him and grinning sheepishly. “Cheers.” And with that word, the three of them gulp down their drink. Jinyoung looks around the room, finding himself to be a bit lost, but he, too, takes a sip of his drink after being delayed a few seconds. The second the drink reaches his tongue, however, he spits it back into the cup and coughs loudly. As he continues coughing, nearly choking due to not expecting it to taste that awful, his back arches and the others stare at him in disbelief._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“What’s wrong with you?” Junhui asks, genuinely in shock at Jinyoung’s reaction to the drink. His face looks offended, in fact, as he puts a hand to his own chest while exclaiming, “I sneaked this from the mess hall yesterday! You have no idea how hard it is to do that.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“What… What is this?” Jinyoung’s confused and rather confused eyes wander around the room, glancing at every person present at least once. Instead of putting the down the cup that now holds lukewarm liquid, though, he lifts it up carefully and gawks at it from below. He swears he can see some clumps of dark red and scrunches his nose slightly in disgust._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________It seems that his question has piqued the interest of the three others, including Wonwoo (who he thought wasn’t paying attention because of the earbuds he’s donning). Seokmin puts a hand on his shoulder in order to turn his body around a couple degrees, letting them have eye contact. Jinyoung is only finding himself to be more puzzled when he sees Seokmin’s brow wrinkled in concern. “Are you feeling okay? Do you need to lie down?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“What? I mean— yes, I’m okay. Why?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Then how do you not recognize blood?” asks Junhui with squinting eyes, needing to bend his torso forward so he can stare closely at the other without crouching down._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Ah, that’s right. Jinyoung had completely forgotten that his roommates are vampires._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Not bothering to say anything else, Jinyoung silently puts the cup down on top of a nearby drawer and shudders, wiping some leftover drops of the red liquid on the edge of his lips away. He hears some shuffling of a blanket and clothing from behind, already guessing that Wonwoo is getting up because he, too, has something to say. In fact, Wonwoo steps in front of Jinyoung and glares at him — he can't tell if that's just him staring blankly or if he's trying to seem intimidating — with both hands in his pockets. “No wonder you smelled weird… You’re not a vampire, are you?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Jinyoung stands still, blinking a couple of times before clearing his throat. “No, I’m not. Can I go drink some water?” However, it’s obvious that the three aren’t planning to let him leave anytime soon, especially not with their curiosity aroused. Rather than feeling displeased that their new roommate (that they’ve been waiting for quite a while) isn’t a fellow vampire, they’re actually quite intrigued by Jinyoung’s presence. They crowd closely around Jinyoung, who tries to make his body smaller so he doesn’t bump into anyone, and they sniff their noses all over his body._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Whoa, you’re right! He does smell odd,” Seokmin exclaims as he lifts Jinyoung’s arm, bringing his nose close in order to smell him. His eyes grow wider once he gets a good idea of his scent, a bit taken aback because he’s never smelled anything like it. Junhui takes a few steps away and, while tilting his head side to side confusedly, scrutinizes the appearance of his new roommate._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________“Then… what _are _you?” The other two seem to have the exact same question in mind, judging from how they both stop their (sort of rude) sniffing and also take steps back in unison. None of them have actually been near a person like Jinyoung, who is basically the personification of Death, so they have no clue what the strange smell that surrounds him is supposed to be.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________Wonwoo raises his hand and turns to Seokmin, who’s standing besides him, and says, “Maybe he’s a pixie? He doesn’t smell good but not that bad, either.” Upon hearing that comment, Jinyoung sniffs his left armpit, wondering if he actually does smell unpleasant (because he doesn’t know that Wonwoo meant ‘ill-mannered’ when he said he ‘doesn’t smell good’)._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________“No, he can’t be! Pixies don’t smell this weird.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________Wonwoo taps on his lower lip, staring carefully at Jinyoung. “Well, JYP can’t be dumb enough to put a werewolf in the vampire floor, so that possibility is ruled out.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________“What if he’s an elf?” Seokmin suggests._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________Junhui groans, rubbing his temples. “Of course he’s not an elf! Do you see any pointy ears?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________While Jinyoung stands still, speechless and with an unimpressed face, Seokmin and Junhui whisper the rest of their argument, occasionally staring at Jinyoung before returning to their conversation. He sighs, wondering if he’ll just have to tell them what he is so they won’t be late to breakfast._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________“Wait, guys,” the three of them hear Wonwoo say from behind. All of their attention goes to him and Jinyoung’s badge that he’s holding out in order to show the rest of the group. “He’s a demon.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________Almost instantaneously, the two who were chattering just a few seconds ago shut their mouths and stare at Jinyoung silence. They’re absolutely expressionless and aren’t making any noises, which drives anxiousness into Jinyoung’s mind. He remembers the mocks and insults that were thrown at Joshua when they were walking down the hall. Is he going to have to suffer through that, too?_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________“Are you serious?” quietly mutters Seokmin. Jinyoung is already preparing himself for the jeering he thinks he’s going to receive._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________“That’s so cool!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________________What? ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________“I’ve never talked to a demon before! I never come across them on campus since there aren’t that many around…” Junhui explains, his eyes widened in wonder at Jinyoung. “What are you, then?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________Jinyoung opens his mouth to respond, but he’s promptly stopped by Seokmin before he could say anything. “Wait, wait, let us guess first! Are you… a cambion?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________Shaking his head, Wonwoo puts down the badge back where he found it and joins his roommates and their debate. “I’ve seen cambions that are way uglier than him. I bet he’s an incubus.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________“But he doesn’t have that ‘aura’ of an incubus, if you know what I mean,” Junhui mentions, frowning as he rubs his chin in contemplation. “He could be a descendant of a demon! Like, I heard that there’s a freshmen who’s a descendant of Beelzebub.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________________Seokmin seems to like that idea, but Wonwoo is glaring at him disapprovingly. “There are _hundreds _of demons. How are we supposed to know which one Jinyang is?”___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________“Jinyoung,” Seokmin reminds him with a smile._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________Waving his hands around, Wonwoo glances at his phone. “Same thing, okay? Also, guys, it’s 7:55. We’re late.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________“Oh, nuts!” exclaims Seokmin as his eyes grow wide in determination. He reaches for his uniform jacket and _runs _out of the room, shouting a couple of incoherent words that none of them understood. Junhui shakes his head, turning towards Jinyoung and shrugging before he, too, dashes out of the room. Wonwoo follows behind the tall Junhui, leaving the transfer student behind.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________________Jinyoung sighs heavily. He hasn’t even changed into his uniform yet._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> okay so i don’t think i mentioned it so here’s a lil explanation:  
> the school’s students are categorized into five different groups depending on their species  
> you have werewolves (a little less than half of the school) vampires (also little less than half) sprites (maybe 25 percent) woodlands (maybe 5 percent) and demons (1 or 2 percent) and students wear a certain color of uniform + badge for whatever category they’re in; red for werewolves, blue for vampires, yellow for sprites, green for woodlands and purple for demon  
> i will probably explain more in the next chapter so :~)


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